Late free throws by Gruber preserve NMU women’s basketball victory

January 6, 2013

MARQUETTE - Northern Michigan University used its halftime lead like a retirement account, much to the chagrin of women's basketball coach Troy Mattson.

The Wildcats scrimped and saved for 20 minutes in building a 16-point lead, 38-22, only to spend nearly all of it in the second half as Lake Erie College kept chipping away before Northern held on for a 68-63 victory Saturday.

"It looked like we were tired in the second half, especially mentally," Mattson said. "I'm disappointed we didn't put this team away.

Article Photos

Northern Michigan University’s Brooke Coenen (40) goes up for a layup as Lake Erie's Skylar Hebert (23) attempts a block during the first half of the GLIAC game at the Berry Events Center in Marquette on Saturday.The Wildcats got some free throws down the stetch to hold on for a 68-83 triumph. (Journal photo by Zach Jay)

"We handled their press in the first half and that gave us a nice lead. This team has enough talent to be good, but we're not a mature team. We made a lot of simple mistakes, and until we overcome that, we're going to have problems."

The Wildcats (8-5 overall, 5-4 GLIAC) have no seniors and only two juniors on their roster. The starting five Saturday consisted of four sophomores and a true freshman, 6-foot-2 Nea Makela of Finland.

But it was one of those sophomore starters - guard Lauren Gruber - who saved NMU when it most needed it.

The Storm pulled within five points, 62-57, with 2:25 left on a layup by senior Ashar Harris. Northern burned 29 seconds of the ensuing 30-second shot clock before Lake Erie forced a tie-up. Unfortunately, the arrow pointed to the Wildcats, meaning they had a second to get a shot up from an inbound pass.

They didn't, though Lake Erie (2-9, 0-8) also missed on its next possession, prompting the Storm to start fouling.

The Wildcats managed to get the ball into Gruber every time after that, and she responded by sinking 6 of 8 free throws in the final 67 seconds to ice the victory.

"Lauren's our best free-throw shooter, so that was good," Mattson said. "She's really been a heart-and-soul competitor for us at both ends of the court.

"She's taken over with the attitude that she wants the ball at the end of the game.

"That's especially gratifying as a sophomore who didn't get a lot of minutes last season."

Gruber finished with 12 points and four rebounds as the only player on either side to play all 40 minutes. Makela finished with team-highs of 15 points and eight rebounds.